Colegio de San Juan de Letran rode a late rally to hold off College of Saint Benilde-La Salle Green Hills and eke out a 79-73 victory in the NCAA Season 98 juniors basketball tournament on Friday.
Letran improved to 7-1 to claim solo top spot while LSGH saw its five-game winning streak snapped as it dropped to 5-3.
The Squires were trailing all game long until Emman Anabo sank a triple that gave Letran the lead, 69-68, before Jonathan Manalili fueled a personal 8-0 run for a 77-68 cushion.
La Salle's Ethan Alian then buried a three-pointer for the Greenies, but it was not enough as Anabo sealed the deal with two free throws.
Andy Gemao led Letran with 17 points, six rebounds, two assists, and one steal while Manalili had 15 markers, eight dimes, and four boards as Letran continued to make a strong case in the tourney.
June Silorio chipped in with 13 points for the Squires while Anabo finished with 12 points and eight rebounds.
Alian was the top scorer for LSGH as he finished with 15 points, five assists, and three rebounds while Seven Gagate had a double-double outing of 13 markers and 18 boards.
La Salle led at the halftime break, 37-30, after a big 21-7 second quarter. They could only muster 13 points, however, in the final period, where they were outscored by 10. Anabo and Manalili combined to score 20 of Letran's 23 points in the fourth.
The scores:
Letran 79 - Gemao 17, Manalii 15, Silorio 13, Anabo 12, Baliling 8, Cruz 4, Diamante 3, Navarro 3, Alforque 2, Hugo 2, Padilla 0.
Benilde-LSGH 73 - Alian 15, Gagate 13, Ison 12, Mesias 11, Pablo 11, Romero 7, Gomez 3, Zaragoza 1.
Quarters: 23-16, 30-37, 56-60, 79-73.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
